title: Naphtho[1,2-d]thiazol-2-ylamine (SKA-31), a new activator of KCa2 and KCa3.1 potassium channels, potentiates the endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor response and lowers blood pressure.
abstract: Small-conductance (KCa2.1-2.3) and intermediate-conductance (KCa3.1) calcium-activated K(+) channels are critically involved in modulating calcium-signaling cascades and membrane potential in both excitable and nonexcitable cells. Activators of these channels constitute useful pharmacological tools and potential new drugs for the treatment of ataxia, epilepsy, and hypertension. Here, we used the neuroprotectant riluzole as a template for the design of KCa2/3 channel activators that are potent enough for in vivo studies. Of a library of 41 benzothiazoles, we identified 2 compounds, anthra[2,1-d]thiazol-2-ylamine (SKA-20) and naphtho[1,2-d]thiazol-2-ylamine (SKA-31), which are 10 to 20 times more potent than riluzole and activate KCa2.1 with EC(50) values of 430 nM and 2.9 microM, KCa2.2 with an EC(50) value of 1.9 microM, KCa2.3 with EC(50) values of 1.2 and 2.9 microM, and KCa3.1 with EC(50) values of 115 and 260 nM. Likewise, SKA-20 and SKA-31 activated native KCa2.3 and KCa3.1 channels in murine endothelial cells, and the more "drug-like" SKA-31 (half-life of 12 h) potentiated endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor-mediated dilations of carotid arteries from KCa3.1(+/+) mice but not from KCa3.1(-/-) mice. Administration of 10 and 30 mg/kg SKA-31 lowered mean arterial blood pressure by 4 and 6 mm Hg in normotensive mice and by 12 mm Hg in angiotensin-II-induced hypertension. These effects were absent in KCa3.1-deficient mice. In conclusion, with SKA-31, we have designed a new pharmacological tool to define the functional role of the KCa2/3 channel activation in vivo. The blood pressure-lowering effect of SKA-31 suggests KCa3.1 channel activation as a new therapeutic principle for the treatment of hypertension.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, University of California, Davis, California 95616, USA.
authors.forename: Ananthakrishnan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sankaranarayanan
authors.forename: Girija
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Raman
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Busch
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schultz
authors.forename: Pavel I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Zimin
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hoyer
authors.forename: Ralf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Köhler
authors.forename: Heike
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wulff
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D052160:Benzothiazoles / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001685:Biological Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects*; D004727:Endothelium / Q000187:drug effects*; D051660:Intermediate-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D015221:Potassium Channels / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D052160:Benzothiazoles; D001685:Biological Factors; D051660:Intermediate-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels; C496925:Kcnn4 protein, mouse; D015221:Potassium Channels; C067410:endothelium-dependent hyperpolarization factor; C535212:naphtho(1,2-d)thiazol-2-ylamine